Election Commission (EC) Secretary Akhtar Ahmed has said that the number of polling centres may be increased if there are rational grounds for doing so, although discussions within the commission have leaned towards keeping the current number unchanged.
Speaking to journalists at the EC headquarters on Monday (18 July), Ahmed said the commission had reviewed policies on establishing polling centres.
“We discussed that the number of centres will not be increased. But that does not mean we must keep the exact number as in the past. If there are logical reasons, centres may be added,” he explained.
According to the EC secretary, one polling centre is allocated for every 3,000 national election voters. Based on current calculations, he said it may be possible to manage without increasing the number of centres, particularly if adjustments are made. For instance, instead of assigning one booth for every 500 male voters, the allocation could be increased to 600, which would still ensure voter accommodation.
“If our assessment finds this acceptable, we will proceed on that basis,” he noted.
Ahmed said preparations were being coordinated for the election roadmap, and the work plan would be shared within the week.
Addressing objections regarding constituency boundaries, he said hearings on challenges related to 83 constituencies would begin on 24 August and continue for four days, after which final decisions would be made.
Ahmed stated that the EC had reviewed the status of rejected applications regarding corrections to national identity cards (NID).
“From our perspective, some were unacceptable and therefore rejected. However, applicants have the right to appeal, and these cases will be resolved accordingly,” he said, adding that around 80,000 such appeals are pending.
On voter registration records, the secretary said that scanning Form-2, which began in 2008, was still incomplete. Work has now started to digitise and upload the remaining forms to the commission’s portal, further strengthening its database.
Ahmed also commented on political party registrations, saying applications from 22 new parties have been sent for field-level verification.
Parties whose applications were rejected have been formally notified of the reasons. The commission is pledging greater transparency on the grounds for dismissal, such as incomplete requirements or failure to meet conditions.
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